Northern Italy -
Our first European trip together
Our first European trip together
Days 7 & 8 – Florence
Our next challenge was to get our tire situation under control. Turns out
there is exactly one place in all of Santa Margherita to buy a new tire for a
VW Jetta, and it is a tiny shop in the heart of town. Sure, they had just the
tire we needed…for the approximate price of a set of four back home! Well,
if we could get a receipt, we could conceivably get reimbursed when we
turned the car back in Munich. Oh yeah, that receipt we asked for? It was a
tiny little register tape receipt, like you would get for buying a pack of gum at
the corner store. What could go wrong?
It took a few hours, but soon we were on the road again with a spanking-
new Michelin tire in place. We had already gotten so far off schedule and
off-track with our plans that we decided to just press on to Florence. We
had called ahead and booked a couple of nights in a cozy B&B called The
Hermitage, in the heart of the city right next to the Ponte Vecchio. Finding it
was no problem; finding a place to park the car was a little trickier.
We stashed the car in an underground lot all that day and the next, and
carried our suitcases to the hotel. Over the next day and a half, we
experienced an amazing assortment of the sights and sounds of Florence.
Florence deserves its status as one of the “must-see” cities of the world,
and one of the “big three” of Italy. Few cities can offer such a rich
concentration of remarkable attractions, all within easy walking distance.
We didn’t even have a chance to visit the Accademia (with Michelangelo’s
David), but we never felt cheated by our brief visit there. With approximately
36 hours to spend, we got a lot in.
Day 9 – Siena & San Gimignano
We got the car out of the lot in Florence the minute it opened in the
morning, and set off across the Tuscan countryside to Siena…Florence’s
ancient rival. It was raining fairly steadily by the time we got there, and it
never stopped the entire time we were there. Traffic heading into town was
a nightmare of tour buses, wet pedestrians and confused tourists (like us),
but we finally managed to park the car within a mile or so of the city center.
We would very much like to return to Siena someday, because it is so
obviously a beautiful and historic town. The cathedral is like a
Romanesque fantasy layer-cake, and the vast central Piazza delle Campo,
shaped almost like a shell, is the site of the annual Palio…perhaps the
most interesting civic festival / horse race in all of Europe. The single most
memorable thing in Siena, for us, was the art museum…especially the
astonishingly lifelike white marble figure of a small, sleeping child.
But all in all, Siena was a bust. On a prettier day, with fewer tourists, it
would have been a four-star delight. That’s why we will have to return
someday. If we had to name one single city in the world that we’ve been to
that deserves a second chance, it would have to be Siena.
We slogged back through the rain-drenched streets of Siena, through the
plague of tour buses and the forests of umbrellas, back to the car on the
outskirts of town. Now, the good news: by the time we drove the 15 miles to
San Gimignano (our final destination for the day), the rain had let up to a
light sprinkle.
San G, when viewed from the road appears on a hilltop like a far-away
metropolis of skyscrapers. In reality, it is only a couple of miles away, and
the “skyscrapers” are actually the old ruined bell towers of the rich and
powerful families of the town. Hundreds of years ago, one’s status in the
San G community was established by how tall you could build your bell
tower. At one time, there were dozens of such towers scattered throughout
the town; today, the ones that remain are still an incredible sight to behold.
We checked in to the La Cisterna hotel late in the afternoon. Despite it
being late October, we had to settle for the top-floor room with a private
bathroom across the hall. It turned out to be one of the most scenic rooms-
with-a-view we have had, before or since. Looking out one window, we
faced a prime example of a San G bell tower. Looking down from there we
could see the ancient central piazza of the cisterna (or water well), which
no one we asked could say how old it was. Looking out the other window,
the timeless beauty of the Tuscan hills. It was flat-out magical. We went
down into town, bought a bottle of Chianti, brought it back up to the room,
and just gazed at the beautiful view. Very romantic.
There is more to see in San G itself than just the bell towers. The narrow,
cobblestone streets of the old town lead to an interesting old church.
Beyond that lies an old fortification, the rocca, which provides excellent
views of the lower part of town.
We started to wonder…why were we encountering so many tourists in
Siena, and a nearly full hotel in San Gimignano? These were the final days
of October, and the tourist high-season had long passed. What was up
with that? We asked around, and came to understand that we were coming
up on a national holiday in Italy, All Saints’ Day. Italians from all over were
coming back to the ancient towns of their families for traditional reunions
and religious ceremonies. It was not immediately obvious to us that this
was a growing crisis for our “on-the-fly” trip planning style. It soon became
obvious enough.
Day 10 – Cortona
Once again consulting the trusty Hachette guide, we read of a wonderful
and affordable old hotel in the ancient town of Cortona. We planned on
showing up to this out-of-the-way spot, getting a room, and staying for at
least a couple of days while we bounced around from one charming hill
town to the next. When we arrived at the hotel, we found the proprietor
immersed in an English phrase book. He was trying to teach himself
some basic tourist English, and his proficiency was about equal to our
Italian at that point.
He was able to communicate to us that he was booked solid for the next
several days. When we asked, politely, where we should go instead, he
asked us to stay put while he searched out a solution for us. He came
back with a compromise we could live with…he would put us up in a small,
windowless back room of his place for one night, then we could stay at his
buddy’s place down the road in Portole the next night. That sounded fine to
us.
We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the streets of Cortona, which
is a really, really old town. Like, Etruscan old. The entire village simply
drips with atmosphere.
We ate at the hotel (excellent pennette bolognese!) and Marisa decided to
turn in and get a really good night’s rest that evening. Chris met up with
some American college kids…art students on an exchange program from
Chris’s alma mater, The University of Georgia. They were readying the
hotel’s meeting room for a party. Quite possibly, the only Halloween
costume party in all of Italy! This was exactly the sort of opportunity that
Chris can’t pass up.
The party was a blast, and then everyone adjourned to the village disco
across the street, in the cellar of a medieval building. Chris partied till the
wee hours while Marisa slept for nearly 12 hours.
Next > Perugia to Munich
See all of our trip photos on Webshots
our travels
home
contact us
Our next challenge was to get our tire situation under control. Turns out
there is exactly one place in all of Santa Margherita to buy a new tire for a
VW Jetta, and it is a tiny shop in the heart of town. Sure, they had just the
tire we needed…for the approximate price of a set of four back home! Well,
if we could get a receipt, we could conceivably get reimbursed when we
turned the car back in Munich. Oh yeah, that receipt we asked for? It was a
tiny little register tape receipt, like you would get for buying a pack of gum at
the corner store. What could go wrong?
It took a few hours, but soon we were on the road again with a spanking-
new Michelin tire in place. We had already gotten so far off schedule and
off-track with our plans that we decided to just press on to Florence. We
had called ahead and booked a couple of nights in a cozy B&B called The
Hermitage, in the heart of the city right next to the Ponte Vecchio. Finding it
was no problem; finding a place to park the car was a little trickier.
We stashed the car in an underground lot all that day and the next, and
carried our suitcases to the hotel. Over the next day and a half, we
experienced an amazing assortment of the sights and sounds of Florence.
- We marveled at the serene beauty of Santa Croce, as the sun
shone through the brightly colored stained glass.
- We climbed to the top of the Duomo, which was not as easy as it
looked. But that view from the top…!
- We got up close to the intricately carved doors of the baptistery, and
saw the incredible mosaic work inside.
- We wandered the beautiful Boboli Gardens, including the artificial
“grotto.” The gardens offer the best views of the city, and a chance
to interact with a rather large colony of feral felines.
- We visited the Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi Gallery, home to
priceless works of art…inside and out.
- We went shopping for leather goods at an outdoor market, then
wandered over to Santa Maria Novella (but did not go inside).
- We dined at an authentic Florentine restaurant near the home of
Dante Allegheri, and had, by far, the best pasta fagioli soup of all
time. We also had a decent, if overpriced, meal the next night at
Harry’s Bar.
- And everywhere, we dodged noisy little Vespas while trying to cross
streets.
Florence deserves its status as one of the “must-see” cities of the world,
and one of the “big three” of Italy. Few cities can offer such a rich
concentration of remarkable attractions, all within easy walking distance.
We didn’t even have a chance to visit the Accademia (with Michelangelo’s
David), but we never felt cheated by our brief visit there. With approximately
36 hours to spend, we got a lot in.
Day 9 – Siena & San Gimignano
We got the car out of the lot in Florence the minute it opened in the
morning, and set off across the Tuscan countryside to Siena…Florence’s
ancient rival. It was raining fairly steadily by the time we got there, and it
never stopped the entire time we were there. Traffic heading into town was
a nightmare of tour buses, wet pedestrians and confused tourists (like us),
but we finally managed to park the car within a mile or so of the city center.
We would very much like to return to Siena someday, because it is so
obviously a beautiful and historic town. The cathedral is like a
Romanesque fantasy layer-cake, and the vast central Piazza delle Campo,
shaped almost like a shell, is the site of the annual Palio…perhaps the
most interesting civic festival / horse race in all of Europe. The single most
memorable thing in Siena, for us, was the art museum…especially the
astonishingly lifelike white marble figure of a small, sleeping child.
But all in all, Siena was a bust. On a prettier day, with fewer tourists, it
would have been a four-star delight. That’s why we will have to return
someday. If we had to name one single city in the world that we’ve been to
that deserves a second chance, it would have to be Siena.
We slogged back through the rain-drenched streets of Siena, through the
plague of tour buses and the forests of umbrellas, back to the car on the
outskirts of town. Now, the good news: by the time we drove the 15 miles to
San Gimignano (our final destination for the day), the rain had let up to a
light sprinkle.
San G, when viewed from the road appears on a hilltop like a far-away
metropolis of skyscrapers. In reality, it is only a couple of miles away, and
the “skyscrapers” are actually the old ruined bell towers of the rich and
powerful families of the town. Hundreds of years ago, one’s status in the
San G community was established by how tall you could build your bell
tower. At one time, there were dozens of such towers scattered throughout
the town; today, the ones that remain are still an incredible sight to behold.
We checked in to the La Cisterna hotel late in the afternoon. Despite it
being late October, we had to settle for the top-floor room with a private
bathroom across the hall. It turned out to be one of the most scenic rooms-
with-a-view we have had, before or since. Looking out one window, we
faced a prime example of a San G bell tower. Looking down from there we
could see the ancient central piazza of the cisterna (or water well), which
no one we asked could say how old it was. Looking out the other window,
the timeless beauty of the Tuscan hills. It was flat-out magical. We went
down into town, bought a bottle of Chianti, brought it back up to the room,
and just gazed at the beautiful view. Very romantic.
There is more to see in San G itself than just the bell towers. The narrow,
cobblestone streets of the old town lead to an interesting old church.
Beyond that lies an old fortification, the rocca, which provides excellent
views of the lower part of town.
We started to wonder…why were we encountering so many tourists in
Siena, and a nearly full hotel in San Gimignano? These were the final days
of October, and the tourist high-season had long passed. What was up
with that? We asked around, and came to understand that we were coming
up on a national holiday in Italy, All Saints’ Day. Italians from all over were
coming back to the ancient towns of their families for traditional reunions
and religious ceremonies. It was not immediately obvious to us that this
was a growing crisis for our “on-the-fly” trip planning style. It soon became
obvious enough.
Day 10 – Cortona
Once again consulting the trusty Hachette guide, we read of a wonderful
and affordable old hotel in the ancient town of Cortona. We planned on
showing up to this out-of-the-way spot, getting a room, and staying for at
least a couple of days while we bounced around from one charming hill
town to the next. When we arrived at the hotel, we found the proprietor
immersed in an English phrase book. He was trying to teach himself
some basic tourist English, and his proficiency was about equal to our
Italian at that point.
He was able to communicate to us that he was booked solid for the next
several days. When we asked, politely, where we should go instead, he
asked us to stay put while he searched out a solution for us. He came
back with a compromise we could live with…he would put us up in a small,
windowless back room of his place for one night, then we could stay at his
buddy’s place down the road in Portole the next night. That sounded fine to
us.
We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the streets of Cortona, which
is a really, really old town. Like, Etruscan old. The entire village simply
drips with atmosphere.
We ate at the hotel (excellent pennette bolognese!) and Marisa decided to
turn in and get a really good night’s rest that evening. Chris met up with
some American college kids…art students on an exchange program from
Chris’s alma mater, The University of Georgia. They were readying the
hotel’s meeting room for a party. Quite possibly, the only Halloween
costume party in all of Italy! This was exactly the sort of opportunity that
Chris can’t pass up.
The party was a blast, and then everyone adjourned to the village disco
across the street, in the cellar of a medieval building. Chris partied till the
wee hours while Marisa slept for nearly 12 hours.
Next > Perugia to Munich
See all of our trip photos on Webshots
our travels
home
contact us
Florence, Ponte Vecchio
Florence, Santa Croce
Florence, Santa Croce
Florence, Boboli Gardens
Florence
Florence, Santa Maria Novella
Florence
Siena
Cortona
Florence, Palazzo Vecchio
